Lupito Nyong’o: Jedi or Sith?

Vitalii Sediuk, the guy who allegedly punched Brad Pitt at the premiere of “Maleficent” last week, told The Associated Press on Monday that he never intended to hurt Pitt. He said he was merely trying to give Pitt a hug when he fell over a barricade and jostled the actor.
Casey CurryTHE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Nerdly news

Nerds get a bad rap for being basement-dwelling haters of everything. And while that stereotype is well deserved, this also is true: There are two simple ways to melt a nerd’s heart.

One: Cast an actor from one nerd enterprise in another nerd enterprise.

Think Chris Evans as the Human Torch and Captain America, Ian Mckellen as Magneto and Gandalf, and Summer Glau in everything.

Which means we found particularly thrilling the news that Gwendoline Christie has been cast in the upcoming seventh episode of “Star Wars.” Christie, as faithful Stargazers know, is best known for playing the noble and giant Brienne of Tarth on HBO’s “Game of Thrones.”

The second way to melt a nerd’s heart: Cast a legit famous actor in something nerdy.

Think Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk, Christian Bale as Batman...and Ian McKellen as Magneto and Gandalf.

It’s been long rumored that Oscar winner Lupito Nyong’o of “12 Years a Slave” would be in the next “Star Wars,” and Monday it was made official.

The castings also calmed the waters after the first cast photo showed only two female actors amidst a lot of dudes.

So, yes, squeeeee!

Production is underway for the film, which is being directed by J.J. Abrams. It’s slated to open in December 2015.

Don’t mess with a pregnant woman

The sublime Amy Poehler was out promoting her upcoming memoir, “Yes Please,” at New York’s BookCon over the weekend and related a story about Jon Hamm on the set of “Saturday Night Live” the day her obstetrician died:

“I was due the next day,” New York magazine quotes her as saying. “So it’s my first kid, I’m in a ‘Mad Men’ outfit, I turn to everybody and I hysterically start crying, and a really pregnant woman crying is terrifying. So, juicy tears just like squirting out of my eyes. And it was like the punch line to a joke, it’s like, ‘My doctor just died and I’m due tomorrow.’ So Jon Hamm, who I am just getting to know, comes over and puts his hands on my shoulder and is like, ‘This is a really important show for me. I’m gonna need you to get your (expletive) together.’ And I laughed so hard, I probably peed myself — I believe that going from crying to laughing adds, like, five years to your life.”

Something not so completely different

American Monty Python fans who can’t attend the troupe’s London reunion this summer can always look on the bright side of life. The show will be screened in hundreds of U.S. movie theaters.

The anarchic British comedians are getting back together for 10 shows at London’s O2 Arena in July, 34 years after their last stage performance.

Picturehouse Entertainment and Fathom Events say the final performance will be broadcast in more than 600 American cinemas. Many will show it live on July 20, with further screenings on July 23 and 24 and Aug. 6. Tickets now on sale.

Python member Eric Idle says fans will get plenty of old favorites, as well as some surprises “that will absolutely freak people out.”

From ‘A’ to Zzzzzz

Fans of “Pretty Little Liars” wondering just how long the show can milk this whole “Who is ‘A’?” mystery should feel assured that the show’s producers are worried about that, too.

“It’s very important for me that this show ends when it should end and not go on beyond,” says executive producer Marlene King. “I don’t want to beat a dead horse. I don’t want to linger. We’ve got a story we know we want to tell. When it feels like we don’t want to tell that story anymore, it’s time for it to end.”

The ABC Family series returns with its fifth season June 10.

Smatterings

That “Friday the 13th” reboot you neither knew nor cared about? It’s been pushed from March 2015 to November 2015.

“Zombieland” director Ruben Fleischer is rumored to be among those considered for Marvel’s “Ant-Man,” but he’s also said to be in the running for the long-talked-about “Ghostbusters 3.”

If you guessed “Oliver Stone” to the question of Who Might Make a Movie About NSA leaker Edward Snowden, you were correct.

Stargazing was compiled by basement-dwelling hater of everything David Frese. Get more Stargazing via the Twitter machine: @KCStargazing.